Peter Wick, Markus Zehnder. The Parthian Empire and its Religions. Studies in the Dynamics of Religious Diversity: Das Partherreich und seine Religionen. Studien zu Dynamiken religiöser Pluralität. Gutenberg: Computus, 2012. 218 S. ISBN 978-3-940598-13-4.
Reviewed by Michał Marciak
Published on H-Soz-u-Kult (January, 2013)
The book under review is the latest fruit of dom in ten papers is certainly very important and the existence of a transdisciplinary research con‐ worthy of attention. sortium at the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (the Käte The frst paper by Dieter Metzler (“Aspekte re‐ Hamburger Kolleg “Dynamics in the History of Re‐ ligiöser Vielfalt im Partherreich”) gives an over‐ ligions between Asia and Europe”) which has pro‐ view of the religious makeup of the Parthian king‐ duced a publication consisting of a combination dom. The main impression one gets from this pa‐ of papers delivered at a conference in Bochum in per is that of striking religious diversity within 2008 and articles which provide a thematic com‐ the confnes of the Parthian realm. Namely, Met‐ plement to this. zler surveys basic evidence for the presence of The idea behind this volume is to shed more Zoroastrian, old-Oriental (understood as local light on the religious makeup of the Parthian Semitic cultures, e.g. in Babylon, Assur or Hatra), kingdom – a topic whose importance has perhaps Greek, Jewish and Christian traditions. Separate not been fully realized in previous scholarship. attention is also given to the extant evidence for Indeed, the position of the Parthian kingdom can religious inclinations of Parthian rulers and mem‐ be aptly characterized as “Mittellage” (p. 11) in bers of Parthian elites (and they turn out to be both geographical and chronological terms. both Zoroastrian and Hellenistic). Furthermore, Namely, it spanned a vast geographical area from Metzler stresses that all these various traditions East to West and so “connected the vast steppe did not live in isolation, but interacted. lands in central Asia, the area of the Caspic Sea Markus Zehnder’s frst paper in this volume and the Caucasus with Mesopotamia, the Persian (“Religionspolitik im antiken Vorderen Orient: As‐ Gulf and the Indian Ocean, bordering Asia Minor syrer und Parther”) is devoted to a comparison of to the west and the Indus river to the east” (p. 9). the religious policy of the Neo-Assyrian and Such a vast kingdom included many religious tra‐ Parthian empires. It starts with a theoretical con‐ ditions (Greek-Macedonian, Jewish, Buddhist, sideration of various possible models of interac‐ Zoroastrian, Indian, Christian and many other lo‐ tion between “Regierungseliten”, “religiosen cal and mixed religious traditions that often es‐ Eliten” and “Volk” and then gives a thorough pre‐ cape any strict labelling) which did not remain in sentation of the religious policy of the Assyrians. isolation but creatively infuenced each other. In Zehnder’s view, the Assyrian policy towards Therefore, the task taken on by the authors to other peoples and their religions, though it did present the religious makeup of the Parthian king‐ not in general include religious persecution and H-Net Reviews forced conversion per se, was marked by the be‐ “Religious Dynamics in the Parthian Empire”. The lief that Assyria alone presents the kosmos and cases of Hatra and Arbela”, Zehnder gives a sur‐ consequently that the Assyrians are called to sub‐ vey of evidence for the religious makeup of Hatra due and bring order to the surrounding chaos on and Arbela (Adiabene). In the case of Hatra, Zehn‐ behalf of their patron deity, Assur. Such a view der thoroughly presents onomastic, epigraphic makes the Assyrian model gravitate towards “ho‐ and iconographic data with the purpose of sketch‐ mogenization” (p. 12). In the case of the Parthians, ing the ethnic makeup as well as cultural and reli‐ Zehnder also presents the available data and con‐ gious inclinations of Hatra’s population. Zehnder cludes that their approach was characterized by a also takes a closer look at some select issues: the great deal of tolerance towards diferent local cul‐ characteristics of the cult of Heracles, the exis‐ tures in their empire. In turn, the Parthians them‐ tence of a specifc cult in Hatra for the Arabs only, selves exhibited inclinations towards both Iranian the existence of a Christian community, the ap‐ cults and Hellenistic culture. pearance of Hatrean kings as priests, and fnally Two papers are devoted to numismatic issues. “dog” as Nergal’s epithet. As for Arbela, Zehnder’s First, Linda-Marie Günther (“Seleukidische Vor‐ presentation is limited to brief comments on Jose‐ bilder der parthischen Münzikonographie”) phus’ Antiquitates Iudaicae 20, 17–96 and a sum‐ shows that some stylistic features of fgures of mary of the content of the Chronicle of Arbela Apollo (an omphalos-like object and a bow) and (preceded by brief remarks on the discussion on Heracles (in a standing or sitting pose) on coins its authenticity). struck on behalf of the Parthian kings were adopt‐ Next, Geofrey Herman ofers a brief over‐ ed from the repertoire of the Seleucid coinage. At view of sources on “the Jews of Parthian Babylo‐ the same time, the iconography of Apollo and Her‐ nia”. His discussion includes three groups of acles was creatively transformed so that it could sources: “Contemporary Non-rabbinic Sources on be understood by both Hellenized and non-Hell‐ the Jews of Parthian Babylonia” (mainly Jose‐ enized subjects of the Parthians. For instance, the phus), “Contemporary Rabbinic Sources on the motif of a bow without an arrow was more appro‐ Jews of Parthian Babylonia” and fnally “Sasanian priate for “the king of the kings” as someone with Rabbinic Sources on the Jews of Parthian Babylo‐ a supernatural disposition. Secondly, Vesta nia. Herman places particular emphasis on the Sarkhosh Curtis (“Parthian Coins: Kingship and striking change in recent scholarship which came Divine Glory”) ofers an inventory of iconography to realize that Babylonian rabbis in the Sasanian on coins and reliefs as well as of inscriptions period tampered more aggressively with their which are of religious character and can be inter‐ sources on Babylonian Jews in the Parthian peri‐ preted as serving the religious legitimization of od than previously acknowledged (through em‐ the kingship. bellishment or even invention of these traditions) In her paper “Feindeskinder an Sohnes statt. and consequently we can hardly rely on them in Parthische Königssöhne im Haus des Augustus” order to reconstruct the Parthian period. In his Meret Strothmann suggests frst that sending paper entitled “Jewish Acculturation to Persian young Parthian princes to Rome (frequently la‐ Norms at the End of the Parthian Period” Yaakov belled as sending hostages) can be understood as Elman examines rabbinic traditions concerning an aspect of amicitia between Rome and Parthia two rabbis, Abba Arikha (known as “Rav”) and his and secondly that, once in Rome, the Parthian colleague, Samuel, who lived at the turn of the princes were treated as members of familia Cae‐ Parthian and Sasanian periods. According to El‐ saris. In his second paper in this volume, entitled man, these traditions show a great deal of accul‐ turation of both rabbis (and consequently their
2 H-Net Reviews contemporaries) into the surrounding Parthian This book is certainly of high quality and will and Sasanian culture, e.g. the adoption of the cus‐ be useful as a good introduction for scholars aim‐ tom of temporary marriage by Rav or the visit to ing at specifc research issues. However, a few the Beit Abidan (being probably an annex build‐ more critical remarks, as usual, could perhaps be ing of a Zoroastrian temple where interreligious made. Metzler’s paper plays an important role in discussions were held) by Samuel. this volume as a very useful introduction written Marco Frenschkowski gives a detailed over‐ by an eminent scholar who has many times made view of the relationship between Christians and important points about the religion of the Parthi‐ Zoroastrians under both the Parthians and the ans. See Dieter Metzler, Das Pferd auf den Sasanians (“Frühe Christen in der Begegnung mit Münzen des Labienus – ein Mithras-Symbol?, in: dem Zoroastrismus: Eine Orientierung”). His over‐ SencerŞahin / Elmar Schwertheim / Jörg Wagner view includes diferent perspectives – literary, (eds.), Studien zur Religion und Kultur theological, social and political. To be precise, Kleinasiens. Festschrift für Friedrich Karl Dörner, Frenschkowski frst surveys possible Iranian in‐ Bd. 2, Leiden 1978, pp. 619–638; Saddled Horse fuences on New Testament and early Christian without Horseman – a Religious Symbol of the literature (esp. Mt 2 and Revelation), and then Parthian Time, Miras (Ashgabat) 2 (2002), pp. 162– turns to references to Zoroastrianism among the 167; Arsakiden und andere parthische Fürsten als “Church Fathers” and in gnostic literature. The Anhänger fremder Religionen, in: Anabasis 1 knowledge of Greek and Latin “Church Fathers” is (2010), pp. 226–235. Let me only add that it is con‐ frequently shown to refect “mehr antiquarische troversial whether the presence of the Jews in the Belesenheit als ethnologisches Problembewusst‐ Parthian kingdom can be seen as a direct continu‐ sein” (p. 171), while at the same time Fren‐ ation of the exiles from northern Israel (8th c. schkowski stresses that Christian authors in Ar‐ BCE) and Judah (6th c. BCE). We know very little menian and Syriac show a detailed knowledge of about the fate of the former in particular Our Zoroastrianism. A considerable part of Fren‐ knowledge is limited to scarce onomastic evi‐ schkowski’s paper gives a sketch of the history of dence. See Bob Becking, The Fall of Samaria. An Christians under Parthian and Sasanian rule. Historical and Archaeological Study, Leiden 1992, Here Frenschkowski suggests an in-depth expla‐ pp. 62, 92–93. and such a view touches on another nation of the conficts in theological and social controversial issue – it presupposes that the peo‐ terms; what is more, he aims to include not only ple deported by the Assyrians and the Babyloni‐ Christian, but also the Parthian and Sasanian per‐ ans might already have adhered to what became spectives of this confict. known only a few centuries later as Judaism, and whose most remarkable developments are cer‐ The last paper in the volume is that of Peter tainly to be dated to the period after the 8th c. BCE Bruns (“Weltentstehung und Schöpfung bei Bar‐ (including “rigoroser Monotheismus” on p. 21). daisan von Edessa”) who analyses the cosmogonic For a great deal of variety in what is known as views of Bardaisan of Edessa. Indeed, Bardaisan’s “Second Temple Judaism” see George W. E. Nick‐ thought can be seen as another good example of elsburg, Ancient Judaism and Christian Origins. the creative amalgamation of diferent cultures Diversity, Continuity, and Transformation, Minne‐ typical of the Parthian kingdom: to Bardaisan, the apolis 2003. For the fact that the term Judaism is act of creation was an act of “Zufall”, and his in‐ not frequently used up to the 1st c. CE and there‐ terpretation of fve “classical elements” is perme‐ fore must be treated with caution when describ‐ ated with gnostic, Syrian and particularly Zoroas‐ ing the Hellenistic and Early Roman periods (not trian ideas, as Bruns aptly shows. to mention the 8th c. BCE), see Steve Mason, Jews,
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Judaeans, Judaizing, Judaism: Problems of Catego‐ court in this passage are to be located in Arbela). rization in Ancient History, in: Journal for the One could perhaps understand Adiabene as Arbe‐ Study of Judaism 38 (2007), pp. 457–512. litis during some historical periods, but even then Further, Zehnder’s presentation of the avail‐ there is a great deal more available data about re‐ able data from Hatra is very thorough. However, ligious practices in Adiabene than that presented some interpretations of this data, especially of the by Zehnder: Parthian sarcophagi in Kilizu, Stra‐ onomastic data, are controversial. That is to say, bo’s text about Anahita or Nanaia, Tacitus’ de‐ Zehnder uses personal names as patterns of eth‐ scription of the cult of Heracles with some distinc‐ nicity (and as patterns of culture and politics, tively Iranian features, to give only a few exam‐ which seems to be more justifed). For instance, to ples. Tac. ann. 12,13; Strab. 16,1,3–4. See also Zehnder “the appearance of some Greek names Michał Marciak, Izates and Helena of Adiabene. A may hint at the existence of a small Greek com‐ Study on Literary Traditions and History, Proef‐ munity in the city” (p. 104). On the contrary, it is schrift Universiteit Leiden, Leiden 2012, pp. 147, widely known that Greek names were used by lo‐ 159–173
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History of Judaism, Vol. 4: The Late Roman-Rab‐ binic Period, Cambridge 2006, pp. 82–92, esp. 84. In my opinion, this book is a valuable publica‐ tion about the religious aspects of the Parthian kingdom and can be particularly useful as a good overview and introduction for further research.
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Citation: Michał Marciak. Review of Wick, Peter; Zehnder, Markus. The Parthian Empire and its Religions. Studies in the Dynamics of Religious Diversity: Das Partherreich und seine Religionen. Studien zu Dynamiken religiöser Pluralität. H-Soz-u-Kult, H-Net Reviews. January, 2013.
URL: https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=38021
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.
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